We’d spend all day going through his stash. Everything from splitters, to skivers, presses, stitchers, edge ponders, corner stitchers, chain stitchers. Gear that had lived a dozen lives but still had plenty left to give. He’d scoot around and tell stories of who had used some particular machine to "make a million dollars in the leather business". Then show me how each one worked. He`d walk me through how to fix it when, not if, it broke, so I wouldn’t have to call in a mechanic later. And for many years I was our in house mechanic and fabricator.
Those were long days. They usually ending with a handshake, some gift of a rare out of production part wrapped in newspaper, and a long drive home the same day. And always with more tools and knowledge than I had walked in with.
I learned a lot from Cliff. About machinery, how to fix it when it breaks, about problem solving, and about what it means to know your tools, new or old, and make the most of what you’ve got. He was one of the unsung heroes of our early days. The kind of guy you don’t forget. Because, frankly, you couldn’t even if you tried.
The items in the Cliff Walls Series are built in that same spirit.
Straightforward. Durable. Clever. Built to hold what you need. Designed for people who hit the road, get their hands dirty, and keep going no matter what age.